High School Sports

CARMEL—Aptos High senior guard Cameron Saldana scored 17 points for the Mariners boys basketball team in a 63-41 win against Monterey High at the 73rd Annual Carmel Invitational on Thursday.   Jack Spinelli also had 17 points along with several rebounds, and Max Baldeh had 14...

APTOS—The stakes were high for the Aptos High girls' soccer team in last week’s match against league rival Santa Cruz High.  The Mariners needed to secure a win in order to stay alive in the race for the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League title. However, senior...

WATSONVILLE—The annual Belgard Kup meeting between Pajaro Valley and Watsonville is usually a game filled with lots of mixed emotions both on and off the field. The cross-town rivals aren’t only playing for bragging rights but there’s also a sense of a “family rivalry” that...

WATSONVILLE—St. Francis High junior Sam Braun and his teammates had to wait an extra week to kick off their run in the Central Coast Section playoffs.  It probably felt just as long for the No. 4 seeded Sharks to close out Tuesday night’s 62-59 overtime...

St. Francis made a name for itself following a tremendous 2023 fall campaign in what was the inaugural official season for girls flag football in California.  Opposing teams who didn’t know it then should probably start paying closer attention now. The Sharks are off to...

St. Francis High announced this week that Robert Gomez was promoted to become the next head coach for the Sharks boys’ basketball team. The 43-year-old Watsonville native is replacing Duncan Edwards who was at the helm for five years before stepping down after the 2023-24...

SANTA CRUZ—It was supposed to be a celebratory night for the Harbor High football team which was celebrating its homecoming festivities.  However, it was North Monterey County High that was having all the fun by spoiling the Pirates’ party in a crushing 34-6 victory to...

Going into last week’s league-opener, the focal point for Watsonville junior lineman Luis Marquez was to contain Monte Vista Christian’s passing attack.  It was the same attack that saw Mustangs quarterback Dominic Pierini set Santa Cruz County records against the Wildcatz in last season’s meeting.  On...

The hot streakin’ Aptos boys’ soccer team clinched its second consecutive Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League crown following a 3-0 win over Soquel on Wednesday night.  Senior Nami Banks had one goal and one assist for the Mariners, who closed out the regular season with...

WATSONVILLE—Monte Vista Christian senior Kyle Recotta is on a mission to accomplish some big things for the Mustangs’ football team this upcoming season.  Especially after a challenging year plagued with injuries and going winless in the difficult Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Gabilan Division a year...